Terracotta Warriors & City Wall

The day

What This Day Feels Like

Two thousand two hundred years ago, China’s first emperor took an army into the afterlife. Arriving at opening time matters: for a precious half hour, Pit 1’s ranks of soldiers — each face individual, no two alike — stand in something like the silence they were buried in, before the day’s crowds arrive.

After the pits and the exquisite half-scale bronze chariots, refuel on belt-wide biang-biang noodles, then take the day’s second icon at its best hour: the 14-kilometre Ming city wall, cycled at golden light, watchtower to watchtower above the rooftops of the old city.

Good to know

Before You Go

• Passport required for Terracotta Army entry — tickets are pre-booked to your name
• The site is 1 hour east of the city; the early start beats both traffic and tour groups
• Wall bikes (including tandems) rent by the 2-hour block — the full loop takes about 100 minutes
• Not a cyclist? The wall walk between the South Gate towers is just as lovely